Boeing Scores Early Win in Airbus Rivalry at Dubai Air Show
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Boeing scored a key win on the first day of the Dubai Air Show, securing a $38 billion order from Emirates for its flagship 777X airliner. That gave it an early edge at the aircraft showpiece over main rival Airbus, which is hoping to sell a competing plane to Emirates.
The giant 777X is seven years behind its original schedule, after Boeing said late last month that it won’t enter service until 2027. Emirates said deliveries of the plane will start in the second quarter of that year.
Airbus looks poised to return fire in Dubai, however. The company is set to win the majority of an order being negotiated with Flydubai, we’re told. That order previously looked safe to go to Boeing. Airbus may secure about 150 commitments for its A320 aircraft, a person familiar said.
The Dubai Air Show also played host to a different kind of showdown, with Lockheed Martin’s F-35 squaring off against the Russian Su-57E stealth fighter for Middle Eastern defense budgets. —